The mystery surrounding the future of Douglas Elmendorf at the Congressional Budget Office has major implications on Capitol Hill, as his term expires Jan. 3 and no path for a successor has been laid out.

Mr. Elmendorf is serving a four-year term as director of the CBO, a powerful nonpolitical position that wields considerable sway over tax, spending, and budget proposals from the White House and Congress. Read More »

Republican leaders are being careful so far not to reveal how they might craft budget resolutions next year, an important part of their legislative strategy as it allows the Senate to hold filibuster-proof votes on contentious issues like taxes and health-care policy.

But Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, the ranking Democrat on the House Budget Committee, predicted Republicans would use the budget “reconciliation” process to try to roll back the Affordable Care Act. Read More »

The unexpected toppling of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in Tuesday night’s Virginia GOP primary is set to trigger a major reshuffling of House Republican leadership that could tip the balance of power toward the party’s more conservative lawmakers in Congress. Read More »

Rep. Tom Price of Georgia may be emerging as the biggest threat on the right to House Speaker John Boehner. In an interview, he complains conservatives don’t have a proper platform in the House GOP conference. [National Review]

NPR’s @CoreyFlintoff says a tabloid-style scandal in Moscow featuring a bejeweled blonde, a luxury love nest and a $200 million alleged scam may have led Vladimir Putin to fire his defense minister and suggests a backroom fight among the ruling elite. [NPR]

Michael Barone argues that, based on historic trends, “mass migration” from Mexico to the U.S. may be a thing of the past—even after the U.S. economy recovers. [AEI] Read More »

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi(D., Calif.) said Sunday she wants to complete a deal to avoid a year-end fiscal crisis next month, brushing aside calls from the liberal wing of the Democratic caucus who say the country might be better off if Congress did nothing.

If Washington fails to reach an agreement, some $400 million of tax increases and $100 million of spending cuts will take effect starting next year.

Democrats including Sen. Patty Murray (D., Wash.) have said the best way to deal with the so-called fiscal cliff might be to allow all the Bush tax cuts to expire, putting pressure on Republicans to accept a deal that would give Bush-era tax rates to all but the top income earners.

“I don’t think it’s my role to go to the table with a threat; I think it’s my role to go to the table with some ideas, to be receptive to what we can come to agreement on,” Mrs. Pelosi said in an interview with ABC’s “This Week.” “I’m not criticizing statements others make, but what I am saying is that there’s too much at risk.” Read More »

Rep. Paul Ryan (R., Wis.), the former vice presidential nominee with a broad conservative following, is supporting Rep. Tom Price (R., Ga.) for a key House Republican leadership position, throwing his weight behind a challenge to GOP leaders and sharpening a test of the party’s direction.

Mr. Price, an outspoken conservative who helped lead Republican opposition to President Barack Obama’s health care law, is running against Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R., Wash.) for Republican Conference chairman, the fourth-ranking position in the House GOP leadership. Supporters of Ms. McMorris Rodgers say that as a younger woman from the Northwest, the 43-year-old congresswoman would help the party present a new profile.

House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) and other top House leaders are officially neutral in the contest, but people close to the race say they are quietly backing Ms. McMorris Rodgers. many Republican committee chairmen are doing so publicly. Read More »

About Washington Wire

Washington Wire is one of the oldest standing features in American journalism. Since the Wire launched on Sept. 20, 1940, the Journal has offered readers an informal look at the capital. Now online, the Wire provides a succession of glimpses at what’s happening behind hot stories and warnings of what to watch for in the days ahead. The Wire is led by Reid J. Epstein, with contributions from the rest of the bureau. Washington Wire now also includes Think Tank, our home for outside analysis from policy and political thinkers.